How would you rate Charlie Bighams meals?

[RosieLeaLovesTea]

Hi all
I tried a Charlie Bigham’s meal for the first time yesterday. I was busy with some clearing and declutter if and didn’t have a lot in to make a meal and was pressed for time so I thought I would give it a try. I was please when reading the ingredients list no additives. Are they on the healthier side of the ready meals? I chose the vegetable lasagne and it was very tasty. I’m it it with skme
chips and veg to bulk it out a bit.

how do you rate them if you have tried them?

Yes have tried quite a few . Very tasty imo although he himself has said they cook for taste not health so for people watching eg salt then read the labels .

They aren’t healthy.
Iirc they are full of fat (butter, cream) and salt. That’s why they are so tasty.
I know someone who raved about them saying they were healthy as not full of additives, was really pleased to be splashing out and eating them rather than ‘cheap, nasty supermarket ready meals’ -their cholesterol went through the roof!

I think they’re good, but not like £9 a pop good. They’re expensive for what they are. As a one off once a year, yes, sure. I’m not opposed to cooking so for the cost, I could make a huge amount and freeze it or have leftovers. But the ones I’ve tried have been good, not amazing, but good. I have them maybe when the family is away, otherwise the portions aren’t really family sized (which is the point of them really, they’re meals for one or two rather than 4 or 5).

Tasty, but too salty (and pricey) for me.

I love the tikka masala, the sauce is bloody delicious but I wish there was twice the amount of it!

DM really likes the fish, cottage and shepherd’s pies, and the quality seems good to me. They’re more expensive than supermarket equivalents, but the quality looks considerably better, and DM definitely prefers CB. She doesn’t like meatballs, moussaka generally, so I don’t know about those.

We recently tried the coq au vin, which is supposed to be restaurant quality. Meh. The sauce was over seasoned, and the meat was no better than you’d get in their standard range. Glad we tried (it was 50% off), but won’t bother again.

I buy the fish pie one occasionally, because I am rubbish at making fish pie. I don’t see it as a particularly healthy meal, but it isn’t full of grey fish scraps and chewy prawns so it is certainly an improvement on every other fish pie ready meal.

I think that the one that I tried, was overpriced, and lacking any real flavour. I make most of my own food, so I thought that I would try the moussaka, as it was half price on a yellow sticker, and the ingredients were acceptable. The meal was a disappointment, and even at a discount, it was not worth it, imo.

High-fat foods can be healthy! Unless you have some condition that mandates a very low fat diet, you just need to watch your fat overall - which can be compatible with having high-fat meals in moderation. I'd rank an additive-free, less processed, high-fat food over some UPF low-fat food any day.

When I've had CB meals they have always been very tasty, much better (and healthier) than most ready meals.

The trouble for me is the price. I only buy them when they go on to the reduced shelf.

Were they living on them, for that to happen?

I like their curries and get the versions for 2 when reduced so less than £4 a head. They could do with more veg but they're great for a mid week curry now and then.

I've tried a few. Fish pie is better than Sainsbury's own-brand. Indian curry no better than own-brand, which gives more options anyway. I love the Red Thai curry and Chilli Con Carne (the latter being a guilty pleasure as I really should learn to make it) although I think there's too much rice and not enough meat.

Chicken and Mushroom risotto I've only seen in Waitrose. I've tried something gratin but didn't like it. To me the dishes with mashed potato seem wasteful as that's easy to cook yourself so you're really just buying the convenience of the meat part, which won't be a large portion.

I like them but only buy them on offer. Much too expensive.

It's gastropub basics with the price tag to match.
Who thinks they are healthy? Potion size is odd because it's not quite enough for 2, just about right for one fat man I presume.

They vary. I like the chicken masala curry and the Thai green curry. I did try the vegetable lasagne once but it was bland and I thought the much cheaper Sainsburys version was better.

DH and DS like the Breton chicken one.

I am under no illusions that they are healthy but only eat one once a week at most.

I tried them and I think home made is better. Still nicer than other ready meals but expensive

I’d say we eat a CB meal once a week as it’s so convenient. We prefer them to Cook meals. They’ve crept up in price but usually one is on offer or has a yellow sticker. Have enjoyed most of the ones we’ve tried and I like the lack of ultra processed ingredients. The salt and fat content doesn’t bother me.

I think they are lush but too expensive for me - I only have them if my mom gives me them or if they are on sale.

My mom is quite wealthy and she is a carer for my dad without time to cook really, so she gets them a lot.

They are very calorific it's true - this is ideal for my dad as he eats very little. I wouldn't recommend them for anyone struggling to lose weight tho ....

We really like the Thai curries but do serve extra veg as they’re not quite enough of a meal on their own.

I’m not on a low fat diet so the fat content isn’t a consideration for me. I cook with quite a lot of butter/oil myself anyway

My elderly parents love them. Not huge portions so perfect for their appetites yet good amount of calories. They add salad or vegetables. Easy to prepare. They have about 2 a week.

Whoops, edited as I completely misread this post! The fish pie is a cut above others. We like the chicken and ham gratin best.

@Needtosoundoffandbreathe The Op was acknowledging the lack of chewy prawns in the CB meal.

Mostly found them quite poor, and the portions tiny.

I really like them, and their calorie content is pretty reasonable if eaten between two as the portion size suggests. I am not sure there is any evidence they are unhealthy. (Except for the salt point, fair enough). We eat about one a week as a break from cooking that is cheaper and healthier than a takeaway! It never causes calorie count breaking here. Salad on side. Yum yum.

My elderly parents also love them, we rarely get them though as they’re so expensive. I do use them if we’re on a uk self catering holiday though.